Home Group Devos
When we meet for Home Groups this semester, we are going to add a little "Jesus' into the mix. Jesus spent a lot of his time around a table, sharing a meal with his friends. There's something about eating together that lowers our defenses and allows us all to speak a bit more freely about our lives. This is where God can show up, and we are here for it!
Every week, we'll share a 5-minute devotional and prayer with whoever we happen to be sharing a meal with. Take a look below for the weekly devo!
Every week, we'll share a 5-minute devotional and prayer with whoever we happen to be sharing a meal with. Take a look below for the weekly devo!
April 19th:
"For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing."
James 1:3-4 (NLT)
Tests are never fun, are they? The lead up can be so stressful, downright scary! Let's be honest, the real reason teachers give us tests are to torture us, right?
Tests are hard, but what James tells us here is that tests cannot be avoided, especially when it comes to our faith. A test of faith isn't a multiple-choice test (we all know I'd just choose C if I didn't know the answer). A test of faith can be something that challenges our trust in God: hardship, suffering, debates, doubts.
These things, try as we might, cannot be avoided. Which is why we need endurance! That's where our trust in God has the chance to grow.
If you were to run a marathon without any endurance, how do you think that would go? Not well, would it? That why runners train themselves to overcome the mental and physical obstacles that come with running: sore feet, struggled breathing and sweat!
The same is true for our life of faith. If we are going to build up endurance, we have to be willing to engage with the things that challenge our life of faith in an authentic way.
What is something you are facing right now that makes it hard to trust God? Perhaps it is doubt. Or perhaps it's some kind of hardship you are experiencing. Whatever it is, lay it at the feet of Jesus and ask Him to help you through it. Let him help you build up that endurance you need to trust Him more!
PRAYERS FOR OTHERS
SPOKEN TOGETHER:
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you;
may he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm;
may he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you;
may he bring you home rejoicing : once again into our doors.
James 1:3-4 (NLT)
Tests are never fun, are they? The lead up can be so stressful, downright scary! Let's be honest, the real reason teachers give us tests are to torture us, right?
Tests are hard, but what James tells us here is that tests cannot be avoided, especially when it comes to our faith. A test of faith isn't a multiple-choice test (we all know I'd just choose C if I didn't know the answer). A test of faith can be something that challenges our trust in God: hardship, suffering, debates, doubts.
These things, try as we might, cannot be avoided. Which is why we need endurance! That's where our trust in God has the chance to grow.
If you were to run a marathon without any endurance, how do you think that would go? Not well, would it? That why runners train themselves to overcome the mental and physical obstacles that come with running: sore feet, struggled breathing and sweat!
The same is true for our life of faith. If we are going to build up endurance, we have to be willing to engage with the things that challenge our life of faith in an authentic way.
What is something you are facing right now that makes it hard to trust God? Perhaps it is doubt. Or perhaps it's some kind of hardship you are experiencing. Whatever it is, lay it at the feet of Jesus and ask Him to help you through it. Let him help you build up that endurance you need to trust Him more!
PRAYERS FOR OTHERS
SPOKEN TOGETHER:
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you;
may he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm;
may he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you;
may he bring you home rejoicing : once again into our doors.